News Releases

Search form

October 26, 2017: North Hills Man Sentenced for Hate Crime Killing of Son, Murder of Wife

A 71-year-old man was sentenced today to two terms of life in state prison without the possibility of parole for stabbing his wife at their North Hills home and then shooting his son because of his sexual orientation, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced.

On Sept. 28, a jury found Shehadeh Khalil Issa guilty of two counts of willful, deliberate and premeditated murder with a special circumstance allegation of multiple murders in case PA086010.

The jury also found true a hate crime allegation and allegations of use of a knife and a shotgun as deadly weapons.

Issa fatally stabbed his wife, Rabihah Shibi Issa, 68, on or between March 27 and 29, 2016, prosecutors said. Shehadeh Issa then fatally shot his son Amir Issa, 38, on March 29, 2016, prosecutors added.

According to evidence presented at the trial, police responding to the family’s home after the shooting discovered the bodies of Amir Issa outside of the house and Rabihah Issa’s body was found inside a bathroom. The murders were motivated by the defendant’s desire to sell the house they all shared and an extreme hatred of his son’s sexuality, prosecutors said.